hieve another to escape it at the South. That it will ultimately
triumph none can doubt."[89]

91. ~Attitude of the United States.~ In the North, with all the
hesitation in many matters, there existed unanimity in regard to the
slave-trade; and the new Lincoln government ushered in the new policy of
uncompromising suppression by hanging the first American slave-trader
who ever suffered the extreme penalty of the law.[90] One of the
earliest acts of President Lincoln was a step which had been necessary
since 1808, but had never been taken, viz., the unification of the whole
work of suppression into the hands of one responsible department. By an
order, dated May 2, 1861, Caleb B. Smith, Secretary of the Interior, was
charged with the execution of the slave-trade laws,[91] and he
immediately began energetic work. Early in 1861, as soon as the
withdrawal of the Southern members untied the hands of Congress, two
appropriations of $900,000 each were made to suppress the slave trade,
the first appropriations commensurate with the vastness of the task.
These were followed by four appropriations of $17,000 each in the years
1863 to 1867, and two of $12,500 each in 1868 and 1869.[92] The first
work of the new secretary was to obtain a corps of efficient assistants.
To this end, he assembled all the marshals of the loyal seaboard States
at New York, and gave them instruction and opportunity to inspect
actual slavers. Congress also, for the first time, offered them proper
compensation.[93] The next six months showed the effect of this policy
in the fact that five vessels were seized and condemned, and four
slave-traders were convicted and suffered the penalty of their crimes.
"This is probably the largest number [of convictions] ever obtained, and
certainly the only ones for many years."[94]

Meantime the government opened negotiations with Great Britain, and the
treaty of 1862 was signed June 7, and carried out by Act of Congress,
July 11.[95] Specially commissioned war vessels of either government
were by this agreement authorized to search merchant vessels on the high
seas and specified coasts, and if they were found to be slavers, or, on
account of their construction or equipment, were suspected to be such,
they were to be sent for condemnation to one of the mixed courts
established at New York, Sierra Leone, and the Cape of Good Hope. These
courts, consisting of one judge and one arbitrator on the part of each
government, wer